FILM: War of the Worlds

Marketing Malarkey

Marketing has come a long way since it was first used to tweak the nipple of the masses and have them squealing with delight. But the movies seems to be one area where the supposed sharpshooters occasionally still miss the mark.
One such example is the current War of the Worlds campaign. Let me give you a bit of background to set the scene. As someone who works on a lesser-known sci-fi magazine, it's hard enough to get into screenings as it is. Shouting "Don't you know who I am?" doesn't work if they don't know who you are. Anyway, our next issue comes out on June 30 and we went to press on Friday. That short time to press means if we could get a review in at the last minute we'd have the drop on our competitors who go to press much sooner. Since War of the Worlds comes out in cinemas on July 1, I was confident there'd be a screening in time. Repeated calls and messages to the PR office didn't put me off (I've found that PRs rarely go out of their way to get back to you - it's not like it's their job to promote something. Oh wait, it is!).

But when I did finally get a response it was a hurried call to say there wouldn't be a screening of WOW (whatever you do don't call it WotW, that's guaranteed to get their back up) until three days before it opens in cinemas. My reaction? I put the phone down and announced to the office that "War of the Worlds is shit". What other explanation could there be for screening it for the press at such short notice?

So it was with a bit of a snigger that I read in one of this weekend's tabloids (sorry to be vague, but it was open in the Chinese restaurant while I was waiting for takeout) that the WOW marketing people are really annoyed. It seems that word of mouth has decided their Cruise/Spielberg money-making machine won't be worth the price of a ticket. Who says marketing doesn't work?

DVD: Doctor Who – Series One: Volume Two

Doctor Who continues its revival with humor and inventive plots, as aliens threaten the Earth in episodes four to six.

In the two-part story made up by Aliens of London and World War Three, a ship crashes into the Thames causing panic in London and around the world. Russell T. Davies uses an alien takeover of the British Government to make gags about politicians being full of hot air (or fart jokes as they’re usually called) and some pointed comments about weapons of mass distruction being launched in 45 seconds.

However, the story feels stretched at two episodes and the bad switch between CGI monsters and people in rubber suits lets the side down.

The jewel in the series so far is Dalek, the third episode on this disc. The classic Who enemy gets a more sympathetic take, as the Doctor encounters a lone Dalek in a museum of alien artifacts. The parallel between Christopher Eccleston’s Doctor and the creature-driven machine as the last remaining members of their kind is moving.

Buy Season One of the new Doctor Who at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

DVD reviews by Matt Chapman

Stargate: Atlantis – Rising

Few TV series have launched more successfully than Stargate SG-1’s first live-action spin-off, Atlantis. Devised over the best part of three years by the makers of SG-1, Atlantis takes all the exciting action, winning drama, stunning visuals and fine characterization of the original show and successfully breathes new life into the franchise by setting the adventure in a whole new galaxy.

The series begins on a confident note with the movie-length pilot, Rising. A very enjoyable opener, this beautifully establishes Atlantis’ format, characters and regular villains, the irresistibly-evil Wraith. It also benefits from a memorable guest turn by The X-Files' Robert Patrick.

The region one release suffers from a lack of episodes (the region 2 disc included Rising, Hide and Seek and 38 Minutes), but makes up for this with a commentary by director Martin Wood and actor Joe Flanigan. They share some interesting facts about the new series – it was the first Stargate to be filmed in HDTV; it was Flanigan’s eleventh pilot! – but it’s their in-depth discussion of character and dialogue that shows the work that went into creating the show.

The 23-minute Preview to Atlantis featurette will be well known to SG-1 DVD fans, while ‘Sneak Peak: Stargate: Atlantis Preview to Season 2’ gives a few scant facts about what’s to come (I don’t think I’m spoiling anything by telling you Dr. Weir gets a bigger office and McKay gets a permanent lab).

Buy Stargate: Atlantis on DVD at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

DVD reviews by Matt Chapman

DVD: Son of the Mask

In Son of the Mask, Jamie Kennedy flouts the rule of never working with children and animals, but he should follow a more pertinent rule – stay away from bad scripts. When cartoonist Tim Avery (Kennedy) puts on the Mask and gets jiggy with his wife, his son turns out to be a bouncing boy. Literally.

This follow-on from the Jim Carrey original ups the stakes by having three characters with special powers: the baby, a mask-wearing dog and the god of mischief Loki (Alan Cumming), but even that doesn’t help.

Watch the trailer online instead – it’s two minutes long and has all the best bits.


Buy the Son of the Mask on DVD from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Matt Chapman is available to write DVD reviews.

DVD: Return to the Batcave

Original caped crusader Adam West is joined by middle-aged-man- wonder Burt Ward for a batty look back at their 1960s Batman TV show. Not content with lifting the lid on the antics of their younger personal lives, the pair team up again to track down the stolen Batmobile.

The acting hasn’t improved, the plot is cheesy and melodramatic and there are enough sexual gags to put a Carry On movie to shame, but as a modern-day version of a camp classic it works well. It’s a shame the DVD extras are so thin.

Buy Return to the Batcave on DVD at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com


DVD reviews by Matt Chapman